In a country starved of genuinely quick bowlers, Varun Aaron grabbed the headlines when he hit 153 kph during the 2010-11 Vijay Hazare Trophy final against Gujarat. Hailing from Jharkhand, Aaron has been part of the MRF Pace Academy in Chennai since he was spotted by a talent scout at the age of 15. In his first year with the Jharkhand Under-19 side, he also played for East Zone and was later part of the India Under-19 camp. He grew up admiring Andy Roberts, and pace has been his focus since his teens. This led to two stress fractures of the back soon after he made his Ranji Trophy debut in the 2008-09 season for Jharkhand, but he continues to focus on bowling quick. Possessing a smooth run-up and a repeatable action, Aaron consistently bowls in excess of 140 kph from close to the stumps with decent control. Having earlier been part of the Kolkata Knight Riders squad, he made his IPL debut in 2011 for Delhi Daredevils.

He was part of the India Emerging Players squad that went to Australia in 2011, and after impressing there earned a call-up to the India ODI squad for the series in England. Though he did not get a game on that trip, he made his India debut in Mumbai, when England went over to the subcontinent for a return ODI series in October 2011. He made his Test debut a month later, against West Indies, also in Mumbai.
A back injury kept him out of India's tour to Australia in 2011-12. He bowled in a few matches in the IPL 2012 but the recurrence of the injury put him out of competitive cricket for 15 months. He made a comeback on the tour to New Zealand, playing three ODIs and was also a part of the squad for the Asia Cup. He was named in India's Test squad for the England tour.

Why was it that Australia put in such a hazy performance in a match that mattered so much? Of the two teams they are the more experienced, the more used to winning and entering this week the more confident

Australia's selectors and management have been accused of being too harsh on Brad Haddin but the team's horrible display at Edgbaston suggests that they may actually have been too lenient, and not just on him

Australia's selectors and management have been accused of being too harsh on Brad Haddin but the team's horrible display at Edgbaston suggests that they may actually have been too lenient, and not just on him

Why was it that Australia put in such a hazy performance in a match that mattered so much? Of the two teams they are the more experienced, the more used to winning and entering this week the more confident